I'm sure all of our readers have seen all seen the online reviews of Intel's
new Core 2 Duo E8400 and E8500 dual-core processors. They're big news.
These new processors codenamed Wolfdale benefit from a die shrink from 65nm
to 45nm, and improved architecture which results in better clock for clock
performance compared to the Conroes. As well, L2 cache has been increased
from 4MB to 6MB, and the bus speed bumped from 1066MHz to 1333MHz
(quad-pumped). Initial reports from around the web place the E8000 series
Wolfdales as great overclockers. Looking at many review websites and user
experiences from forums, the E8400's and E8500's are hitting upwards of 4GHz
with air cooling without much voltage increase. Adding this performance
with a retail value of around $230CDN (~$230US), the E8400 is a great value.
The current problem with the E8000 series is availability. There aren't
many stores, if any, which have the E8400 or E8500 in stock. These
processors are high in demand, and so far supply from Intel hasn't been able
to keep up.